Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception [Paperback]

Martin Wishnatsky (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 24, 2003

Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception is a riveting, often hilarious account of how a sincere believer was disabused of his confidence in the Mormon revelation. The author joined the Mormon Church in 1980. A year later, he received a Temple Recommend for the Washington, D.C., Temple. He entered the Temple a Mormon, but left it a non-Mormon.

Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception presents a rare, detailed eyewitness account of the Mormon Temple ceremonies circa 1981. No other book of which the author is aware presents such a starkly authentic account of these secret ceremonies of Mormonism. As a Harvard Ph.D. in Political Science, the author was driven by his shocking experience in the Mormon Temple to research the origins of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He tersely and cogently presents irrefutable evidence of its true character.

From the Washington Temple to the millions of rolls of microfilm in Granite Mountain to Joseph Smith’s Masonic rip-off, all is revealed and woven together to reveal the church’s foundation in darkness.

If you want to know the truth about the Mormon Church, you will find it here—from one who saw it with his own eyes. The ambitions and pretense of this institution, termed by one author "The Islam of America," is presented for the purpose of setting the captives free. "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Martin Wishnatsky, a Jewish man, was born in 1944 in Newark, New Jersey. In 1977, during a time of distress in his life, and after receiving prayer from a believer, he began to read the Bible and was drawn from darkness to light, from the power to Satan to Jesus Christ. Mr. Wishnatsky is a graduate of Harvard College (1966), and holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard University (1975). He is the author (Martin Weil) of A Pretty Good Club: The Founding Fathers of the U.S. Foreign Service (W.W. Norton and Co., 1978).

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

FROM THE CONCLUSION.

It has not been easy to tell the truth about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — to conduct a controlled extraction of the teeth of this cunning dragon. The Ku Klux Klan, by comparison, is a model of sincerity. Surely Mormon missionaries should be required by the municipalities in which they proselytize to wear a button reading: "Warning: Mormonism may be dangerous to your health." Under the pretense of "bearing a message from Jesus Christ," the missionaries are really seeking to lure the unwary into an oath-bound organization from which there is no escape except on terror of death. At least an initiate into the Ku Klux Klan understands the nature of the institution he is joining. A Mormon convert, however, as he prepares for his momentous and soul-stirring first trip to the Temple, is told that he will enter an atmosphere of "simplicity, dignity and quiet . . . there to ponder quietly the eternal things of God." "There is a feeling of timelessness and peace found there that exists nowhere else," writes BYU Stake President and Professor of Physics J. Duane Dudley. "The only way to prepare for the temple," he continues, "is to prepare your spiritual self. You should go to the temple in a spiritual frame of mind and be ready to learn spiritually." There is little in such language to prepare the novice for irrevocable membership in a secret society sealed by blood oaths. The fact that it is over seventy years since anyone has published the truth about Mormonism is an indication of the effectiveness of the terror instilled in the Endowment rooms. So sinuous and seductive is the preparation for this experience that the initiate is baffled, embarrassed and terrified to admit that he has been taken in and played for a sucker. (He also may be too busy adjusting to the discomfort of wearing his Mormon underwear continuously to think about much else.) If he wavers or quavers, his priesthood leaders will hover over him. "He is having trouble with his testimony," they will say and spend time "prayerfully" re-educating the weakling and carefully exclude him from any position of responsibility in the apparatus.

An indication that other first-time endowees have been surprised and stunned by the experience may be seen in the carefully chosen remarks of Elder W. Grant Bangerter at the April, 1982 General Conference. "Having the privilege of working each day in the administration of the temples," said Elder Bangerter, swinging easily into temple-ese, "I am constantly impressed with the richness, the holiness, and the glory of the blessings administered there." And now the point: "Questions come to us about the ordinances performed in the temple." (What a world of anguish lies behind his affected innocence!) "We, of course, are not permitted," explains the faithful servant of God, "to discuss them outside the temple, because of their sacred nature." Apparently some members had complained at the sharp contradiction between what happens in the Endowment rooms and what they are led to expect. "Others press for a preparatory orientation so that those who enter the temple will not be confused." No chance, says Elder Bangerter that we will give the dupes a break. "I want to emphasize that the preparation to enter the temple lies in the gospel. Nothing is said or done in the temple which does not have its foundation in the scriptures."

The truth is that not until one is in the Endowment Room of the temple, the doors closed and guarded, the spotters vigilantly watching every gesture, does the truth of total "consecration" on penalty of death come out. There is no aisle in the Endowment Room should one decide to run out; he would have to clamber over the bodies of the other experienced ritual throat-slitters, dodge past the spotters, and then race out of the building before anyone could react fast enough to stop him. Whether or not it would be more or less difficult to hitch a ride on the Capitol Beltway dressed in Temple robes is difficult to say. One would be considered either a lunatic and studiously ignored or a herald of the Second Coming and graciously assisted. NOTE: My experience in the Mormon Temple in Washington, D.C. took place in 1980-81. A lot of the terror was airbrushed out in the 1990 rewrite.

Product Details

• Paperback: 108 pages
• Publisher: Xulon Press (June 24, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159160494X
• ISBN-13: 978-1591604945
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #204,605 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No Fluff, August 17, 2008

By 

Jane Dough (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception (Paperback)

This book is very readable, interesting, and informative. It is a great book with which to begin learning about the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. It was written by an ex-Mormon who became disillusioned while going through the temple ceremony. This concise book explains a lot of what the church doesn't include in its public image. It does not deal with the many controversial subjects that would be discovered by a study of the church history and the founding of the church including the origin of the Book of Mormon and the character of their founder Joseph Smith. For this kind of book read "An Insider's View of Mormon Origins", a deep technical book but worth reading if you are interested.

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A highly personal book, April 13, 2007

By 

Patrick J. Southam - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception (Paperback)

This book is one man's story of his disillusionment with his religion - Mormonism - and how that led him to leave it. I give this book a high rating for the personal aspect of the story. I rate it a little lower for people looking for the "secrets" of the Mormon religion and temple ceremonies. You can find those in other books such as "The God Makers."

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TRUTH, January 16, 2012

By 

Bookworm (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mormonism: A Latter Day Deception (Paperback)

A well-researched, first-hand account of the practices and beliefs of the Mormon Church. Dr. Wishnatsky is extremely well-educated and his research is incredibly thorough. The revelations behind the secret practices of the Mormon Church is disturbing to say the least. It is about time for the light of truth to shine on these dark practices. Thank you, Dr. Wishnatsky!